Drash – Noach

Rabbi Dr. Esther Jilovsky

Rabbi Dr Esther Jilovsky

Sometimes the past can feel like another lifetime. A memory of living in a different city or country, or working in another field, or even fond memories of school or uni days, can seem like a lifetime ago. The Hebrew phrase, לפני המבול, lifnei ha’mabul, refers to a long time ago, or something that feels like a very long time ago, that we might refer to as ‘ages ago’ or ‘yonks ago’ in English. In Hebrew, לפני המבול, lifnei ha’mabul literally means ‘before the flood.’ But not just any flood: before Noah’s flood. It comes from this week’s parasha.

Just last week, we celebrated Simchat Torah and started reading the Torah again from B’reishit, beginning with the creation of the world. This week, in Parashat Noach, we read not one but two stories of destruction. The flood narrative of ha’mabul is not the only destruction narrative in this parasha. The Tower of Babel story also depicts destruction and dispersion wrought by God. In both narratives, God destroys on account of human behaviour. In the flood narrative, God destroys living creatures, and in the Tower narrative, God destroys the tower and disperses those who built it. Both narratives describe undesirable human behaviour: corruption and lawlessness in the flood story (Genesis 6:11), and greed, arrogance and chutzpah that led to the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:4). While God observes these behaviours from a distance, God then intervenes in the story in a deliberate and decisive manner.

The flood narrative unfolds at the beginning of the parasha, leading to the watershed moment (pun intended!) when the entire earth becomes flooded. God instructs Noah to build an Ark, large enough to accommodate Noah and his family, as well as pairs of each bird, animal and creepy-crawly, who will be saved as the rest of the world is destroyed (Genesis 6:18-20). The Torah states:

וַאֲנִ֗י הִנְנִי֩ מֵבִ֨יא אֶת־הַמַּבּ֥וּל מַ֙יִם֙ עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ לְשַׁחֵ֣ת כׇּל־בָּשָׂ֗ר אֲשֶׁר־בּוֹ֙ ר֣וּחַ חַיִּ֔ים מִתַּ֖חַת הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם כֹּ֥ל אֲשֶׁר־בָּאָ֖רֶץ יִגְוָֽע׃

‘“For My part, I am about to bring the Flood [ha’mabul]—waters upon the earth—to destroy all flesh under the sky in which there is breath of life; everything on earth shall perish.’ (Genesis 6:17)

The mabul ‘flood’ testifies to God’s awesome powers of destruction. The mabul refers to God’s powerful waters of destruction that will wipe out any living creature not safe in the Ark with Noah and his family. The Eternal One who spoke the world into being just a few chapters ago at creation (Genesis 1:2-26) now shows the Eternal’s strength in the power to destroy the entire world.

The Tower of Babel story is also a tale of destruction based on human behaviour, but it leads to a vastly different outcome. It begins:

וַיְהִ֥י כׇל־הָאָ֖רֶץ שָׂפָ֣ה אֶחָ֑ת וּדְבָרִ֖ים אֲחָדִֽים׃

‘Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words.’ (Genesis 11:1)

That is, everyone had the ability to understand one another. According to traditional commentators Rashi, Ibn Ezra and the Radak, this same language, literally שָׂפָ֣ה אֶחָ֑ת ‘one language,’ that everyone spoke, was Hebrew. One day, the people decided to build a tower:

וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ הָ֣בָה ׀ נִבְנֶה־לָּ֣נוּ עִ֗יר וּמִגְדָּל֙ וְרֹאשׁ֣וֹ בַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וְנַֽעֲשֶׂה־לָּ֖נוּ שֵׁ֑ם פֶּן־נָפ֖וּץ עַל־פְּנֵ֥י כׇל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

‘And they said, “Come, let us build us a city, and a tower with its top in the sky, to make a name for ourselves; else we shall be scattered all over the world.”’ (Genesis 11:4)

Here, the people work together to build a tower מִגְדָּל֙ וְרֹאשׁ֣וֹ בַשָּׁמַ֔יִם ‘a tower with its top in the sky.’ To build the tallest tower they could build. At first glance, this behaviour does not seem as problematic as the ‘corruption and lawlessness’ that led to the flood. But the phrase implies that they are building a tower that would literally reach heaven. In Hebrew, שָּׁמַ֔יִם shamayim means both ‘sky’ and ‘heaven.’ That is, human beings were trying to reach God’s realm – an area off-limits to them.

Just as in the flood narrative, God stops the undesirable behaviour, which halts the Tower building activity. However in this story, it’s neither a direct nor total destruction. Instead, the Torah states that the Eternal One ‘confounded their speech’ (Genesis 11:7) and ‘scattered them from there over the face of the whole earth’ (Genesis 11:8). Rather than simply destroy, in this story the Eternal removed the people’s tools essential for collaboration: the ability to speak the same language and gather in the same place. This is a different tactic than total destruction, because it leaves open the possibility for reconnection, and even rebuilding.

These two contrasting narratives about human behaviour and God’s response have much to teach about approaches to rebuilding after destruction. The destruction wrought by the flood, ha’mabul, seems absolute. Those left behind, who were not entitled to a place on the Ark, did not get another chance. But the Tower of Babel story offers another perspective. While not sharing a common language, and being scattered and separated from one’s people are both true challenges, it is possible to overcome them with patience, determination, a willingness to learn and an adventurous spirit. The process of getting to know other peoples and cultures, travelling and learning languages, are all things which provide a basis for understanding other people from diverse backgrounds. Unlike the flood narrative, the Tower of Babel is not a total wipe out. Instead, it sows the seeds for future understanding.

Let us learn from the Tower of Babel story by building bridges of connection, rather than towers towards heaven. Let us build bridges not to the sky, but to others. Bridges that deepen understanding in our world. Bridges that enable us to travel and visit new lands. Bridges that allow us to learn other languages and experience other cultures. Bridges that allow us to truly listen to other perspectives, without intent to destroy them. Bridges that help us to connect with those who are truly broken, and need our help. Bridges that bring us out of silos and into conversations. Let us build bridges that lead to peace.

1. The meaning of וּדְבָרִ֖ים אֲחָדִֽים is a little more complex. Ibn Ezra posits that it means that ‘the learned and the ignorant in those days spoke alike,’ while Rashi gives multiple possibilities, including that וּדְבָרִ֖ים אֲחָדִֽים actually means דברים חדים ‘sharp words.